
Qass Eg.OT 
Book . f\^ f)d 



PRESENTED Wf 



(Compliments of 
.MART e\ "BUTTeRICK 



I I 



I 




.JS^t/ d>Uf^ii 



fj/ 



PROCEEDINGS 

of 

TOWN MEETING 

at 
Sterling, Mass. 

JULY 14 
1919 



Presentation of Portrait 
of Lord Stirling 



,/4 3S8 



Printed privately by 
Miss Mary E. Butterick 



LtBdARY OF CONGRESS 
RECEIVED 

AUG301921 

DOCUMENTS DiVi3ION 



f^. 






TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Photogravure of Portrait of Lord Stirling 
presented to Town of Stirling by Miss 
Mary E. Butterick . . . Frontispiece 

Warrant for Town Meeting 3 

Motion, H. P. Kendall 6 

Letter of Gift of Portrait of Lord Stirling, 

Miss Mary E. Butterick 7 

Unveiling of Portrait, Miss Mabel Elizabeth 

Butterick 9 

Song, Marseillaise lo 

Address, Arthur P. Rugg I2 

Song, America, The Beautiful .... 65 

Motion, John A. Davis . . . . . .67 

Vote of Acceptance 67 

Motion, Rev. F. T. Crane 67 

Vote of Thanks 68 

Song, The Star Spangled Banner ... 69 

Adjournment 70 

Bibliography Concerning Lord Stirling . . 71 



Sterling, Mass., 
July 14, 1919, 
8 o'clock P. M. 

TOWN MEETING 

The meeting is called to order by 
the Moderator, Mr. George F. But- 
terick. 

Moderator: The Clerk will read 
the Warrant. 

Town Clerk Jacob W. Longley: 
"Town Warrant: Worcester, ss. To 
Jacob W. Longley, Warrant Officer, 
or either of the Constables in the 
Town of SterUng, Greeting: 

"In the name of the Common- 
wealth of Massachusetts, you are 
directed to notify the inhabitants of 
the Town of Sterling, qualified to 
vote in Elections and Town affairs, 
to meet at the Town Hall in said 



4 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

Sterling, on Monday, the 14th day of 
July, A.D. 1919, at 7.30 o'clock in 
the evening, then and there to act on 
the following article, viz.: 

"Article I. To see if the Town 
will vote to accept the gift of a por- 
trait of Lord Stirling, for whom the 
Town was named, or act in any way 
relative thereto. 

"And you are directed to serve this 
Warrant by posting up attested 
copies thereof, one at the Town Hall 
and one at the Post Office at Sterling 
and Sterling Junction in said town, 
ten days at least before the time of 
holding said meeting. 

"Hereof fail not, and make due re- 
turn of this Warrant, with your do- 
ings thereon, to the Town Clerk, at 
the time and place of meeting as 
aforesaid. 



Sterlings Massachusetts 



"Given under our hands this 
second day of July, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand nine hundred and 
nineteen. 

"GEORGE F. BUTTERICK, 
"CHARLES F. ADAMS, 
"JOHN A. DAVIS, 

"Selectmen of Sterling. 
'A true copy, attest: 

"JACOB W. LONGLEY, 

"Warrant Officer." 



a 



6 Proceedings of ^own Meeting 

Moderator: Is there any action 
proceeding from Article I? 

Mr. H. P. Kendall: I move that 
gentlemen present at this meeting, 
who are not residents of the Town, be 
granted the privilege of speaking. 

(Motion carried) 

Arthur P. Rugg: Mr. Modera- 
tor, I have been asked to read the 
following letter: 



Sterling^ Massachusetts 



"To the Town of Sterling: 

"The Town of Sterling was named 
for one of the heroes of the revolu- 
tionary war. His military career 
was most creditable. His ardent 
patriotism is emphasized by his noble 
lineage. The portrait of Lord Stir- 
ling, recently painted by the accom- 
plished artist, Miss Eleanor C. 
Bannister, based on the portrait of 
him in Independence Hall, is pre- 
sented to the town of Sterling as a 
token of my abiding interest both in 
the town and in its name. It is a 
happy coincidence that the date of its 
presentation falls on the national 
holiday of France. With her sol- 
diers Lord Stirling fought as comrade 
in arms for the achievement of our ex- 
istence as a nation. She is again our 
ally. Her contribution to civiliza- 



8 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

tion in the present great war has 
made all the future her debtor. 
^'July 14, 1919. 
"MARY E. BUTTERICK, 
''406 Franklin Avenue, 
"Brooklyn, N. Y." 



Sterlings Massachusetts 



Moderator: The portrait will 
now be unveiled by Miss Mabel Eliza- 
beth Butterick. 



(Portrait unveiled) 



lo Proceedings of Town Meeting 

MARSEILLAISE 

(Sung by chorus under the direction 
of Miss Christine E. Burpee) 
Ye sons of France, awake to glory! 
Hark! Hark! what myriads bid 
you rise! 
Your children, wives, and grandsires 
hoary, 
Behold their tears and hear their 

cries ! 
Behold their tears and hear their 
cries! 
Shall hateful tyrants, mischief breed- 
ing, 
With hireling hosts, a ruffian band, 
Affright and desolate the land. 
While peace and liberty lie bleeding? 

To arms, to arms, ye brave! Th' 
avenging sword unsheathe! 

March on, march on! all hearts re- 
solved on victory or death. 



Sterling, Massachusetts ii 

Moderator: We will now listen to 
an address by Hon. Arthur P. Rugg. 



12 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

Address by 
ARTHUR P. RUGG 

Mr. Moderator and Friends: 

No gathering of American people 
on the fourteenth of July can fail first 
to pay a tribute of affection and 
respect to the republic of France. 
Most of us learned last year for the 
first time that the fourteenth of July 
is the national holiday of France. 
Then all over this country celebra- 
tions were held on that date in honor 
of our gallant ally. The dominant 
note of those meetings, the moving 
spirit of America twelve months ago, 
was one of courage and greeting in a 
common cause, a cause which we all 
had faith to believe would triumph, 
but which in that hour we had no 
certain demonstration would eventu- 
ate in our victory. 



Sterlings Massachusetts ij 

Today we meet to celebrate a 
victory won, the greatest victory 
for the cause of human freedom 
that the history of armed conflict has 
known. 

As you will recall, the fourteenth of 
July is Bastille Day. It is cherished 
in France because on the fourteenth 
of July there fell the castle — the 
prison — of the Bastille. Nothing 
could mark more pointedly the differ- 
ence between the people of the United 
States and the people of France than 
the source and nature of our two 
national hoHdays. The Fourth of 
July denotes the Declaration of In- 
dependence. It signifies a formal 
statement of the principles on which 
we believe the future government of 
mankind depends. It was a decla- 
ration of the purpose of all the 



14- Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

people to rule and to be secure in cer- 
tain inalienable rights and a declara- 
tion that these principles are the 
only principles on which the race can 
progress. 

Bastille Day, on the contrary, 
means chiefly a creation of the imagi- 
nation. The Bastille was a prison. 
It typified to the French people the 
despotism of the kings under whose 
heels their fair country had been 
ground for centuries. The des- 
truction of the Bastille was the work 
of a mob. The deaths which came on 
that day resulted from the broken 
word of the officer at the head of that 
mob. Although he had given his 
pledge of honor that no blood should 
be shed, blood flowed almost like 
water in the streets of Paris on that 
first fourteenth of July. Yet that 



Sterling^ Massachusetts 75 

day has been seized upon by the 
imagination of the French people and 
spirituaHzed as the emblem of free- 
dom and equality and fraternity, and 
of release from despotism. I believe 
it would have been impossible for the 
children of the Puritans to have trans- 
formed such an event and to have 
idealized it and made it a national 
holiday significant of the aspirations 
of a great nation. The day on which 
the Bastille fell has become the na- 
tional holiday of France. 

France was our ally in the revolu- 
tion. We would have had a far harder 
struggle to have achieved our inde- 
pendence but for the aid of the armies 
of France. And the service which 
she rendered to us at that time is 
embodied and envisaged in the name 
of one man. We scarcely ever recall 



i6 Proceedings oj Tozvn Meeting 

Rochambeau or De Grasse, but we 
always think of Lafayette. It was 
his name more than any other which 
aroused the American people toward 
sympathy and ultimate alliance with 
France in this recent titanic struggle 
now drawing to its close. This war 
has disclosed depths of endurance 
and shown heights of heroism among 
the French people, the existence of 
which we in America had scarcely 
dreamed. They have not only m.ani- 
fested dauntless courage but they 
have borne sufferings untold with a 
spirit of hopefulness which has elec- 
trified mankind. We now know the 
French people not only as lovers of 
art and patrons of literature, but we 
know them as willing to suffer to the 
last drop of blood of the last French- 
man of France in defense of country 



Sterlings Massachusetts ly 

and to suffer with a smile and a cheer. 
That spirit has magnified France in 
the eyes of the world. It has espe- 
cially endeared the people of France 
to the people of America. 

I ask your indulgence while I read a 
few lines of tribute which Theodore 
Roosevelt only a short time before his 
death paid to France: 

"France embodies all of loveliness 
and all of valor. Beauty is her hand- 
maiden and strength her shield 
bearer, and the shining courage of her 
daughters has matched the courage 
of her dauntless sons. For three and 
a half terrible years she has walked 
light of heart through the valley of 
the shadow. Her body is in torture, 
but her forehead is alight with the 
beauty of the morning. Never in all 
history has there been such a stead- 



i8 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

fast loyalty in the doing of danger- 
ous duty, such devotion to country, 
such splendor of service and of sacri- 
fice, and great shall be her reward, for 
she has saved the soul of the world." 
On this day in Paris there has been 
the Parade of Victory. For the first 
time since the shame of France in 
1871, when the legions of Germany 
trampled her under foot, soldiers 
have been marching under the Arc de 
Triomphe. Our fellow countrymen, 
our brothers, our own flesh and blood, 
under the Stars and Stripes, have 
joined with the Allies of France and 
Great Britain in celebrating the vic- 
tory of civilization over barbarism by 
this day marching under the Arch of 
Triumph. This day will be memora- 
ble in the annals of the international 



Sterling, Massachusetts ig 

relations of France and the United 
States. 

There is peculiar appropriateness 
for us here in Sterling to be able to 
honor Lord Stirling, for whom our 
town was named, on this fourteenth 
of July. He was associated with 
Lafayette. He was a comrade in 
arms with Rochambeau and with De 
Grasse. And, therefore, it is most 
fitting that we should celebrate on 
this day the presentation of this beau- 
tiful portrait of the m.an for whom 
this town was named. 

The query naturally comes to the 
mind of a New Englander, "How do 
we know that the town of Sterling 
was named for Lord StirHng?" He 
spelled his name "Stirling," and we 
have for one hundred and forty years 
spelled our town name with an "e" 



20 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

instead of the first "i." Doubting 
Thomases may well say, "Are we 
certain that the name was not chosen 
from the standard of sound money 
the world around instead of from the 
revolutionary general?" 

I think the proof is plenary that 
our town of Sterling bears its name 
because of Lord Stirling. In the 
first place, that is the record of his- 
tory. Peter Whitney, a minister of 
Northboro, wrote the first history of 
Worcester County. That history 
was published in 1793, twenty-two 
years after the naming of the town, 
and he says in that book — ^written so 
near the time of the naming of the 
town that it was quite possible for 
him to have talked with those who 
were present and knew — that the 
town was named for Lord Stirling. 



Sterlings Massachusetts 21 

In 1824 Isaac Goodwin, who was 
a lawyer of distinction, a historian 
and antiquarian, once a President of 
the American Antiquarian Society, 
and who was the author of perhaps 
the best history of Sterhng, says that 
it was named for Lord StirHng. He, 
too, wrote within a period of time after 
the naming of the town when it was 
quite possible for him to have con- 
versed with those who participated in 
the interesting event of naming the 
town. 

Moses Sawyer, whom perhaps 
some of the older persons here pres- 
ent may remember, wrote a history 
of Sterling in the early part of the 
nineteenth century, still to be seen 
in manuscript, and he says that 
the town was named for Lord Stirl- 
ing, the general of the revolution. 



22 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

Other later historical authorities are 
to the same point. 

There is tradition, too, that the 
motion by which the town received 
its name was made by Captain Ben- 
jamin Richardson — by the way, the 
great-great-grandfather of Elizabeth 
Butterick who has just uncovered to 
our view this portrait. She was ap- 
pointed by the finger of fate as the 
girl to do the unveiling tonight, as 
well because of that relationship to 
the man who voiced the desire that 
the town bear the name of Sterling, 
as because she is a cousin of the donor 
of the portrait. There is a tradition 
that Captain Benjamin Richardson, 
who was then chairman of the select- 
men of Lancaster, from whose terri- 
tory our town was carved, made in 
public meeting the motion that the 



Sterling, Massachusetts 2J 

new town be called for the nobleman 
general. Captain Richardson was 
a revolutionary soldier who won 
laurels on the field of battle. He en- 
listed from the town of Leicester. 
It is highly probable that he served 
in some of the armies which were 
commanded by Lord Stirling. It is 
a curious coincidence that Lord Stirl- 
ing had a larger number of soldiers 
in the revolutionary war under his 
direct leadership than any other gen- 
eral. He commanded regiments or 
companies from every state of the 
original thirteen except South Caro- 
lina and Georgia. Therefore a large 
proportion of the New England 
troops as well as those from other 
parts of the country had the privilege 
of serving under him. 



24- Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

Tradition further tells us that 
Captain Richardson advocated nam- 
ing the new town in honor of Lord 
Stirling because he not only served 
under that general but shared his 
tent during the hardships of cam- 
paign, and that his generous and 
courtly manners even in the trying ex- 
periences and privations of war com- 
pletely captivated the heart and 
judgment of the hard-headed Wor- 
cester County captain. 

You will see when you read the 
plate which is on the frame of this 
portrait that the first name is "Wil- 
liam Alexander," followed by "Earl 
of Stirling." William Alexander 
was born by that name in New York 
in 1726, being the son of James Alex- 
ander. His father, who emigrated to 
this country from Scotland, was a 



Sterling, Massachusetts 25 

man of considerable learning, a math- 
ematician, an astronomer, and after 
coming to these shores he studied 
law and became one of the first citi- 
zens of New York. He was a friend 
and associate of Benjamin Franklin, 
and with him founded the American 
Philosophical Society, which is one of 
the oldest, if not the oldest, learned 
society in America. This son was 
trained in the learning of his father, 
mathematics and astronomy, and 
early went into business. His moth- 
er was the widow Provoost. She con- 
ducted on her own account a very 
considerable commercial enterprise 
in New York even after she became 
Mrs. Alexander. Her son was active 
in her employ and subsequently be- 
came her partner. When the French 
and Indian War broke out in 1754 



26 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

or thereabouts, he was appointed an 
aide to General Shirley, who com- 
manded the British forces at that 
time against the French and Indians. 
General Shirley was recalled to 
Great Britain in 1756 because of crit- 
icism of his conduct of the war, and 
was succeeded by Lord Amherst. 
When he returned to Great Britain, 
he took with him his aide, William 
Alexander, in order that the latter 
might assist him in the inquiry as to 
his military operations in America, 
which was conducted in London. 
Thus it came about that WilUam 
Alexander went to London in 1756, 
and remained there until 1761. It 
had been common talk in the family 
before he left Scotland that the father, 
James Alexander, was the nearest heir 
to the earldom of Stirling. The last 



Sterling, Massachusetts 27 

direct male heir of that earldom died 
in 1739, so that the title, to be kept 
alive, must go to some collateral kin- 
dred. William Alexander v/as led by 
his friends in London to lay claim to 
the title. Therefore, he went to Edin- 
burgh and took the first steps for 
establishing his claim to the earldom 
of Stirling. 

Before I speak of that, it will be 
interesting to review the earldom of 
Stirling. The first Earl of Stirling 
was created by patents by King 
James the First in 1621, and renewed 
again about 1626, and by King 
Charles in 1633. William Alexander 
was the first Earl of Stirling. He 
was a man of diversified talents, of 
great ability and of tireless persever- 
ance. Beside many other accom- 
plishments he was a poet. A col- 



28 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

lection of his verse was printed in 
1637. To a few elegant copies in- 
tended for presentation there was 
prefixed his portrait executed by a 
celebrated engraver, William Mar- 
shall. It is curious that in the 
Latinized inscription around this the 
name is spelled "Sterlin." 

He became a friend of King James 
the Sixth of Scotland, who was later 
James the First of England, chiefly 
because of his literary accomplish- 
ments. King James himself is most 
familiar to this generation in a liter- 
ary way because his name is on the 
title page of the standard version of 
the Bible. He was very proud of his 
achievements in literature. Anybody 
who possessed literary talent gained 
easy access to the presence and 
friendship of the King. The William 



Sterlings Massachusetts 2g 

Alexander of that day had talent as an 
author of no mean order. He was a 
prolific writer. He wrote many pre- 
tentious poems, one of which, it is 
said, suggested to John Milton the 
theme for '^Paradise Lost." He 
was deeply interested in the coloni- 
zation of America. He was fertile in 
schemes for the settlement of the new 
world, which he prosecuted with great 
vigor and persistence. At all events, 
for some or all of these accomplish- 
ments he became a great friend of 
King James the First, who invested 
him with the title of Earl of Stirling 
and Lord Lieutenant of Canada. 

With the creation of that title went 
the most opulent grant of territory 
that ever sovereign conferred or un- 
dertook to confer upon a subject. 
It included the whole of Nova Scotia. 



JO Proceedings of Town Meeting 

It comprised all of Maine lying be- 
tween the Kennebec River and Nova 
Scotia. It embraced fifty leagues of 
the land on each side of the St. 
Lawrence River and on all sides of 
the Great Lakes. It even stretched 
around Long Island and adjacent 
islands, including probably Nantucket 
and Martha's Vineyard, which, accord- 
ing to the patent, were forever to be 
known as the Isle or Isles of Stirling. 
That grant of land seems ridicu- 
lously extravagant in its extent, 
measured by modern conception, but 
doubtless it rather indicates the ig- 
norance of the King and the Council 
and the statesmen of Great Britain 
as to the extent and wealth and ge- 
ography of their American posses- 
sions. Nevertheless, William Alex- 
ander was created first Earl of Stirling 



Sterling, Massachusetts JJ 

in 1621 with this princely grant of 
land in America. He was given that 
primarily because of his profound in- 
terest in the subject of colonization. 
Among other accompanying grants of 
power was that of creating baronets. 

He spent large sums of money in 
fitting out two expeditions which un- 
dertook colonization in Nova Scotia 
and Maine in that part of the grant 
made to him. 

It may seem odd that there never 
had been an Earl of Stirling before 
1621. The city of Stirling in Scot- 
land is almost the oldest city in that 
country. Nobody knows how early 
it was settled, or how early it was 
named. Its beginnings are lost in 
the mists of antiquity. Its magnifi- 
cent hill was a natural fortress against 
all the methods of warfare of those 



52 Proceedings of "Town Meeting 

days. It was therefore one of the resi- 
dences of the Kings of Scotland. I 
fancy that nobody could be the Earl 
of Stirling except the King until the 
time came when the King removed 
his residence from Stirling, which 
happened when King James succeeded 
to the throne of Great Britain. The 
first Earl of StirHng thus became in- 
vested with this grant of land, vastly 
exceeding in area the kingdom of his 
nativity. The enjoyment of it, how- 
ever, was rendered hazardous because 
colonists of France sooner or later took 
possession of almost all of it except 
Long Island. The heirs of Stirling 
never enjoyed the practical benefits of 
it. Even the King never was able to 
change the name of "Long Island" to 
the "Isle of Stirling" — fortunately 
for us, perhaps, because we might not 



Sterling, Massachusetts 55 

have been able to take that name, if 
previously it had been attached to 
Long Island. 

It was quite natural that anybody 
who thought he had a claim to the 
title of Earl of Stirling in 1756 should 
have undertaken to have established 
that claim. The possible reward of 
success was dazzling in its richness 
and sweep of power. Doubtless the 
main purpose of William Alexander 
in asserting his claim was the lands 
and jurisdiction in America which 
he conceived would devolve upon 
him with the title. He was no mere 
adventurer. He had acquired con- 
siderable property in his own right 
and by marriage with Sarah, the 
daughter of Philip Livingston. That 
claim was put forward by William 
Alexander, the American-born, on the 



34 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

theory of Scottish law that the earl- 
doms of Scotland descended only to 
and through the male heirs and in 
default of direct male heirs went to 
collateral male kindred; and while 
William Alexander, the subject of 
our consideration tonight, was not a 
direct descendant of the first Earl of 
Stirling, he was a direct descendant of 
an uncle of the first Earl of Stirling. 
He was represented by Alexander 
Wedderburn as chief counsel, who 
afterwards gained the highest pro- 
fessional distinction open to the bar 
of Great Britain by becoming Lord 
Chancellor under the name of Lord 
Loughborough. He succeeded in 
proving he was the nearest male rela- 
tive in the line of male descent of the 
last occupant of the earldom. That 
was so decided by a jury convened 



Sterlings Massachusetts ' J5 

according to the forms of law in Edin- 
burgh in 1759. It was called the 
Jury of Service. While I am not wise 
touching such matters, so far as I 
understand it, this was a somewhat 
pecuHar proceeding. It is instituted 
in chancery and the precept is di- 
rected to a judge ordinary. The jury 
consists of fifteen persons who are 
sworn to act faithfully. The object of 
their inquiry is to ascertain whether 
the claimant is the lawful heir of the 
deceased peer. The verdict with a 
due account of the proceeding signed 
by the chancellor of the jury and by 
the judge, called the ''retour", is filed 
and recorded in chancery. When 
these steps are completed in regular 
form the title is established. Lead- 
ing men of the city of Edinburgh were 
summoned as jurors. The history 



jd Proceedings of Town Meeting 

of the title and the evidence showing 
that WiUiam Alexander was the right- 
ful heir to it under the law of Scotland 
were presented to such jury. That 
jury declared that William Alexander 
was Earl of Stirling, and that was one 
step — some claim the only step — at 
any rate an important and essential 
step — necessary to establish his title. 
William Alexander was advised, how- 
ever, that he ought to apply to the 
King for a confirmation of his title to 
the earldom, and so, although he im- 
mediately assumed the title Earl of 
Stirling, he did make application to 
the King, by whom it was referred to 
the House of Lords. This course ap- 
pears to have been taken through the 
urgency of his English friends but 
somewhat against his own judgment. 
There was considerable delay. Wil- 



Sterling, Massachusetts 57 

Ham Alexander, now calling himself 
and being generally addressed as Earl 
of Stirling, after waiting two years 
returned to this country. Probably 
his return was hastened because of the 
death of his mother, which occurred 
in 1761. After he returned the House 
of Lords of Great Britain adopted a 
resolution that nobody claiming a 
title should use it until its validity 
was passed upon by that body. Then 
his claim was referred to som.e com- 
mittee and it was allowed to lapse. 
So far as the records, which I have 
been able to discover show, nothing 
was done afterwards. 

A change in the ministry followed 
soon after, the whigs who were per- 
sonally and politically the friends of 
Stirling being displaced by the tories. 
The whig prime minister Bute was a 



3^ Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

Scotchman and warmly attached to 
StirHng. Naturally his cause lan- 
guished and was neglected after the 
retirement of so powerful a patron. 
With true American spirit this 
man refused to abide by the direc- 
tion of the House of Lords, that no- 
body should use a Scottish title until 
they had passed upon it, and he con- 
tinued to use the title of Earl of 
Stirling, and was known ever after by 
that title. His position was that 
there was no other claimant to the 
title, that he had established his 
right to it according to the forms 
prescribed by the law of Scotland and 
had been acknowledged and treated 
in public and private for more than 
two years in England as lawful pos- 
sessor of the earldom. 



Sterling, Massachusetts jp 

He returned to New York in 1761, 
and shortly afterward disposed of his 
business and estabHshed himself on a 
great estate at Baskenridge in the 
State of New Jersey where he built a 
residence befitting his rank as a noble- 
man of the Scottish House of Lords, 
and with an ample fortune main- 
tained this great estabhshment until 
the war of the revolution broke out. 

He was all the while an earnest be- 
liever in the growth of America. He 
was much interested in agriculture 
and corresponded with foreign per- 
sons who were wise in that subject. He 
was also much concerned in mining, 
and was diligent in promoting min- 
ing and manufacture. He was elected 
a member of the Council of New 
Jersey, an assistant to the Governor, 
Surveyor General of New Jersey, and 



4-0 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

was active in public affairs as well as 
in these other ways to which I have 
alluded. There is every indication 
that in private affairs as well as in the 
general welfare he was a man of gener- 
ous and enlighted views and sound 
judgment. It is interesting to note 
that he possessed sufficient skill in 
astronomy to make an observation of 
the transit of Venus in 1768, for the 
purpose of verifying the longitude of 
New York. A manuscript report of 
his observations of this transit of 
Venus is in the archives of the Histor- 
ical Society of New York. 

He was active in fostering many 
causes for enlightenment and educa- 
tion of his fellow countrymen. V^ith 
five others he joined in a donation of 
"six hundred pounds to purchase 
books for the people," which was the 



Sterling, Massachusetts 41 

foundation of a public library in New 
York. He was for some years one of 
the governors of Kings College, now 
Columbia University. This institu- 
tion was struggling with poverty 
and he made strong efforts to obtain 
from wealthy Englishmen an endow- 
ment to place it on a more secure 
footing. He formed the design of 
travelling to the west of our country 
for the purpose of making explora- 
tions and gathering information for 
the correction of the then existing 
maps. 

When the war of the revolution 
reached the point of the battle of Con- 
cord and Lexington, he was elected 
colonel of the Regiment of New Jer- 
sey by the Legislature of New Jersey. 
He was severely reprimanded by the 
Royal Governor for accepting such a 



4-2 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

commission, but he replied with spir- 
it that he thought it the highest 
honor that could come to anybody to 
be asked to lead the soldiers of a 
people who were oppressed and were 
struggling for their freedom. 

He undertook the duties of his of- 
fice of colonel, and raised two regi- 
ments. Where the men were not 
able to equip themselves, he armed 
and clothed them out of his own pri- 
vate fortune. 

Quite early in the revolution he 
led one expedition which stamped 
him as a man of enterprise and dar- 
ing with observation and quickness 
to embrace opportunity. There was 
observed off New York harbor a 
British schooner unable to make the 
port, and she was supposed to be 
signaling for the aid of a British man- 



Sterling, Massachusetts 4J 

of-war, which was at anchor in New 
York harbor. Thereupon Stirhng 
seized a pilot boat, and with forty 
volunteers, armed only with rifles, 
set out to take this transport which 
was armed with six guns and laden 
with provisions. With this slender 
force and meagre equipment he cap- 
tured the vessel and brought her into 
port at Perth Amboy in New Jersey 
as a prize. Thus was a soldier with- 
out the slightest pretensions as a 
sailor brought to the attention of 
the public at once as a man of 
resourcefulness and courage. For 
this bold feat he received a vote of 
thanks from the Continental Con- 
gress. He was immediately there- 
after appointed brigadier general, 
and assigned to the defense of New 
York. He fortified New York and 



44 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

built the forts Washington and Lee, 
which constituted our fortifications 
there during the revolution. 

After the city of Boston was evac- 
uated by the British, Washington 
came to New York, and the battle of 
Long Island was fought. The battle 
took place in what is now Prospect 
Park in Brooklyn, and General Stir- 
ling was in command of a body of 
troops which were sent to withstand 
the onrush of British soldiers in order 
to enable the rest of the American 
army to escape, it being greatly out- 
numbered by the British and in a per- 
ilous position. He was then confronted 
by a general named Grant who had 
been a member of Parliament and 
whom Lord Stirling during his stay in 
England had heard say in the House 
of Commons that with five thousand 



Sterling, Massachusetts 4^ 

men he would march from one end of 
the American continent to the other 
in spite of all opposition. When Stir- 
ling was confronted with this great 
body of superior troops commanded 
by this General Grant, he addressed 
his soldiers in this wise: 

"Our enemy is commanded by 
General Grant, who has made his 
boast in my hearing that with five 
thousand men he would march from 
one end of the continent to the other; 
he has his five thousand men; he 
greatly outnumbers us, but he shall 
never proceed in his march farther 
than yonder mill-pond." 

The spirit infused into a body of 
American soldiers by a speech of such 
vigor can readily be imagined. 

Washington looked on from a dis- 
tance and saw the battle, and was 



46 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

deeply impressed with the valor and 
skill of Stirling in making the stand 
against the British and in holding 
out so long as to permit the American 
army to escape. His service on this 
occasion was of the highest value to 
the American cause. He was cap- 
tured and was obliged to surrender at 
the end of this battle, but was soon 
after exchanged. He was appointed 
major general in February, 1777. He 
went with Washington to Pennsyl- 
vania, and there participated in the 
battle of Brandywine and in the battle 
of Germantown and then a year or 
two later commanded a division in 
the battle of Monmouth. 

There is an interesting tribute to 
the soundness of judgment of Lord 
Stirling in the fact that he was ap- 
pointed president of the court mar- 



Sterling, Massachusetts 47 

tial which tried General Lee for his 
treachery at the battle of Monmouth, 
and which brought in a verdict of 
guilty upon all the charges. He was 
also a member of the court of in- 
quiry convened at Tappan in 1778 
to consider the case of Major Andre. 
His advice on the prosecution of the 
war was frequently sought by Wash- 
ington. He enjoyed the confidence 
of the commander in chief to an un- 
usual degree. There could scarcely 
be more certain evidence of or higher 
tribute to the soundness of his mili- 
tary judgment. 

One of the most important and 
valuable services rendered by Lord 
Stirling was the exposure and the con- 
sequent crushing of the so called 
^'Conway cabal." During the winter 
of 1777-78 Generals Conway and 



4-8 Proceedings of T'own Meeting 

Mifflin with the active support and 
approval of General Gates planned to 
secure the dismissal of Washington 
and to have him superseded by Gen- 
eral Gates, then wearing the fresh 
laurels of the victory at Saratoga and 
the surrender of Burgoyne. The 
scheme came to the attention of Lord 
Stirling through an aide of General 
Gates during a convivial hour. He 
immediately forwarded the informa- 
tion to Washington. The signifi- 
cance of this contribution to the 
cause of America hardly can be over- 
estimated. 

Thereafter Lord Stirling was sent 
to command the Northern Division 
of the army at Albany, a post of great 
importance because at that time 
there was another attack expected by 
way of Canada, and he was entrusted 



Sterling, Massachusetts 4Q 

with the duty of repulsing that 
attack. 

I hold in my hand what seems to 
me an exceedingly interesting, if not 
a rather important, historical docu- 
ment. It is a manuscript letter 
written by Lord Stirling on his way 
to Albany to take command of this 
Northern Division. It is dated on 
the tenth day of September, 1781. 
The surrender of the army by Corn- 
wallis occurred on the nineteenth of 
October, 1781, so this was from five 
to six weeks before the surrender of 
Cornwallis. It is directed to Gover- 
nor Clinton of New York, and is 
dated at Peekskill which is on the 
Hudson. Of course, any letter signed 
by Lord Stirling is interesting. This 
seems to me to be especially valuable 



so Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

because of the subject matter, which 
you will observe as it is read: 

"Peeks Kill September 10, 1781 
"Dear Sir: 

"I have the satisfaction to assure 
you that Count DeGrass with 28 
Sail of the Line arrived the 26th Ulto. 
in the Chasepeak Bay, and the next 
day landed 3000 men on the south 
side of James River in order to form a 
junction with the Marquiss La- 
Fayette. Lord Cornwallis was still 
at York, and his retreat either way, 
I think is completely cut off. Count 
DeGrass had taken a British Frigate, 
and his ships entering the River in 
Persuit of the Rest. General Wash- 
ington's Van embarked at the head of 
Elk the 7th, the whole it was expected 
on board the 8th and I hope are by 
this time near the place of operation. 



Sterling, Massachusetts 57 

On his passage Count DeGrass took 
a packet from Charlestown on board 
of which was Lord Rawdon, & Rev- 
ington acknowledges that That the 
Pegassus of 30 Guns & 5 Store Ships 
are taken by Admiral Barrass, who no 
doubt is arrived with his 8 Sail of the 
Line in Chasepeake also: The whole 
strength of the Enemy is 19 Sail of 
the Line at Sandy Hook. New York 
in the highest confusion. All the 
Troops embarking, for West Point or 
Philadelphia is the Word, but I think 
it more likely to be for Halifax. 

"Twenty Six Sail of the Enemy's 
Vessels passed through the sound on 
Wednesday last, made their appear- 
ance off New London on Thursday, 
& returned towards New York on 
Friday. It is said they had about 
2500 men on board under the com- 



S2 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

mand of DeLancy. The time is 
critical, every moment we may expect 
to hear of great events, & God Grant 
the Issue may be as favorable as the 
appearances seem to promise. I am 
happy in having an opportunity of 
sending your Excellency this intelli- 
gence 

''& am Your Excellency's 

''Most Obt. Servant, 

"Stirling. 

"His Excellency Govenr. Clinton 
"Poughkepsie" 

That letter has never been pub- 
lished as far as I have been able to 
discover and is of extreme signifi- 
cance in showing the completeness of 
touch which Lord Stirling kept upon 
all movements of the army, even if not 



Sterling, Massachusetts 5J 

directly connected with his own com- 
mand. It is of exceptional interest 
because of the number of people whose 
names are household words in connec- 
tion with the revolution, which are 
mentioned — Lafayette, Count De 
Grasse, Cornwallis, General Wash- 
ington and one or two others of lesser 
note. 

That letter was written, according 
to its date, on the tenth of September, 
1781. Lord Stirling proceeded to 
Albany to take command of the 
American forces there, and prepared 
with courage and ability to withstand 
the British attack which it was ex- 
pected would be made through Lake 
Champlain and Lake George. But 
of course the surrender of Cornwallis 
put a wholly different face on the 
aspect of the revolutionary war. The 



54 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

expected invasion from the north 
never materiaHzed. 

Lord StirHng died at Albany on 
January 15, 1783, in his fifty-seventh 
year. He was buried in a church, 
which was subsequently torn down, 
but his remains are now interred in 
a cemetery in the city of Albany. He 
left a widow and two daughters, 
Mary, the elder, who married Robert 
Watts, and Catharine, who married 
William Duer. Descendants of both 
these daughters are living in this 
country but of course his name is not 
preserved among his issue. 

There were passed during his life 
two votes of thanks by Congress for 
his achievements in war — one for the 
capture of the transport to which 
reference has been made and another 
for an attack by which he captured a 



Sterling, Massachusetts 5^ 

considerable number of prisoners 
several years later; and then, on his 
death, Congress passed another re- 
solve expressive of their appreciation 
of his distinguished service and his 
great valor, and the extraordinary 
loss which this country suffered in his 
early death. 

The dash and courage and per- 
sistence of the true soldier were his. 
It has been said of him that he was 
"of fine presence and of the most 
martial appearance of any general in 
the army save Washington himself; 
was quick-witted, intelligent, far-see- 
ing ... his example was a perpet- 
ual source of strength and inspira- 
tion" among his troops. 

Immediately after his death, in a 
letter to his widow, Washington 
wrote these words: "It only remains, 



S6 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

then, as a small but just tribute to 
the memory of Lord Stirling, to ex- 
press how deeply I share the com- 
mon affliction, on being deprived of 
the public and professional assist- 
ance, as well as the private friendship, 
of an officer of so high rank, with 
whom I had lived in the strictest 
habits of amity, and how much those 
military micrits of his Lordship, which 
rendered him respected in his life- 
time, are now regretted by the whole 
army." 

No ordinary man could have 
drawn from Washington such a 
tribute. 

These are the bald outlines of the 
life of Lord Stirling. He began the 
war of the revolution a man of 
great wealth according to the stand- 
ards of those days. His possessions 



Sterling, Massachusetts 57 

were counted at over a hundred thous- 
and pounds. He left nothing but 
debts at his death. He had expended 
his entire fortune for the Hberation 
of America. He was unremittingly 
engaged in the military service of his 
country throughout the whole revo- 
lutionary war. It is the more remark- 
able that he should have embraced the 
cause of the colonists with such zeal 
and fervor and manifested such con- 
stancy of patriotism from the very be- 
ginning even to the end, because he was 
a peer of the House of Lords of Scot- 
land and thereby had a right of election 
to the British House of Lords. He was 
allied by rank and family with power- 
ful influences, with the noble houses 
of Great Britain; and if he had es- 
poused the cause of the mother coun- 
try, he would doubtless have been 



^8 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

treated with honor and affluence com- 
mensurate with the social weight and 
ability which he possessed. But he 
lived in America, he believed in Amer- 
ican institutions; he was American 
born; he could be no other than a 
devotee of the American principles. 
His life is an example of the highest 
patriotism. Of course now even 
kings and kaisers and czars are at a 
discount. We smile in our republi- 
can simplicity at the desire of any- 
body to possess a title of nobility. 
But those who lived in these parts in 
1750 to 1770 looked at the subject 
with a rather different eye. When the 
atmosphere of the country of that day 
is considered, when it is recalled that 
the colonists were loyal, that they did 
not begin to think of a final sepa- 
ration from the mother country until 



Sterling, Massachusetts 5Q 

the revolutionary war had actually 
begun — ^when we remember that sen- 
timent of loyalty and have regard to 
the family associations and the social 
distinction in which Lord Stirling 
was reared and lived, it is cause for 
honor indeed that patriotism should 
have been the dominant motive of his 
life, and that he should have given his 
fortune and bared his breast and 
offered his life for the independence of 
his and our country. He is one of 
the characters of the revolution 
whose influence will always be an 
inspiration to the youth of the 
country. 

And so we here in Sterling are 
under a special debt of gratitude 
that we are to possess this beautiful 
portrait, painted by an accomplished 
artist, to remind us of the name which 



6o Proceedings of Town Meeting 

as a town we bear. In these days of 
photography, when almost everybody 
has a kodak, it is difficult to appre- 
ciate how hard it is to find a portrait 
of even a distinguished man who 
lived one hundred and fifty years ago. 
So far as it has been possible to dis- 
cover, there are only three portraits of 
Lord Stirling. One is said to have 
been painted by West. It was in the 
possession of one of the descendants of 
Lord Stirling, Dr. Robert Watts, 
who recently died in New York. This 
represents Lord Stirling with a merry 
eye, a full and vigorous figure of 
about forty years of age, dressed in 
civilian's clothes. 

There is also a miniature, which is 
painted by somebody whose name I 
have been unable to learn, and the 
precise location of whch I have been 



Sterling, Massachusetts 6i 

unable to ascertain, but doubtless It 
is in the possession of some descendant 
of Lord Stirling. 

The third portrait is the one on 
which this one upon the wall is based. 
That is in Independence Hall in 
Philadelphia. It was painted by an 
American artist of no great distinc- 
tion, whose name was Bass Otis. 
Those of you who have visited Inde- 
pendence Hall know that it is full 
of portraits of men of revolutionary 
fame. Some years ago I inquired of 
the ancient keeper of Independence 
Hall if there was a portrait of Wil- 
liam Alexander or Lord Stirling. He 
looked at me in a dreamy way and 
said, ''Stirling — Alexander — who 
was he.^ Was he a signer or suthin'.^" 
Of course, the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence having been signed in Inde- 



62 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

pendence Hall, a signer of that im- 
mortal instrument is paramount in 
the minds of everybody there. But a 
search soon disclosed the fact that 
there was a portrait of Stirling in 
one of the rooms in the Hall. This 
portrait is in full military uniform 
of a major general of the revolution- 
ary war. It is accurate, I believe, 
in every detail as to the uniform. 
You can judge of the character of 
the face as well as I. The artist is 
Miss Eleanor C. Bannister of Brook- 
lyn, who in years gone by has not 
infrequently been the guest here in 
Sterling of the gracious donor of the 
portrait. We are under deep obliga- 
tion to Miss Butterick for this new 
evidence of her wise interest in the 
welfare of the Town. As a Town we 
are fortunate indeed in such a friend. 



Sterling, Massachusetts 6$ 

Mr. Moderator and Friends of the 
Town, it has been a great pleasure to 
me to be privileged to participate in 
these services and to be able to pre- 
sent something of the life of Lord 
Stirling. I am afraid he is one with 
whom we of mature years have not 
been altogether familiar. Reviewing 
my own school days here, I am sure 
little attention was paid in the pub- 
lic schools to the life of Lord Stir- 
ling. This is a subject about which 
the school committee and the teach- 
ers of the future may well think a 
little more in detail than they have 
in the past. 

As the generations rise and pass 
away the children of Sterling ought 
to be taught and to remember that 
the town has produced one great 
man, Chief Justice Mellen, whose 



64 Proceedhigs of Town Meeting 

portrait hangs on this wall, and 
that Lord Stirling is another great 
man, whose name was given to the 
town and whose portrait we here 
dedicate in commemoration of his 
services to our country. 

We are bound to realize that if 
"we are underlings," the reason is 
not because of the place in which we 
live, and that 

"The fault ... is not in our stars 

But in ourselves." 
We have a right to say, with Saint 
Paul, that we are citizens of no mean 
town. 



Sterling, Massachusetts 6^ 

AMERICA, THE BEAUTIFUL 

(Chorus) 

beautiful for spacious skies, 

For amber waves of grain, 
For purple mountain majesties 
Above the fruited plain! 
America! America! 
God shed his grace on thee, 
And crown thy good with brother- 
hood 
From sea to shining sea! 

beautiful for pilgrim feet. 

Whose stern, impassioned stress, 
A thoroughfare for freedom beat 

Across the wilderness! 
America! America! 

God mend thine every flaw, 
Confirm thy soul in self-control. 

Thy liberty in law! 



66 Proceedings of Town Meeting 

beautiful for glorious tale 

Of liberating strife, 
When valiantly for man's avail, 

Men lavished precious life! 
America! America! 

May God thy gold refine, 
Till all success be nobleness, 

And every gain divine! 



Sterling, Massachusetts dy 

Mr. John A. Davis: Mr. Modera- 
tor, I move that the Town of SterUng 
accept the portrait of Lord StirHng 
and tender its thorough appreciation 
of the generosity and thought that 
prompted the gift. 

I think we are fortunate in having 
a friend who takes interest enough in 
this Town to decorate the hall with a 
portrait of Chief Justice Mellen and a 
portrait of Lord Stirling, and I hope 
it will be an inspiration to us to make 
the Town of Sterling worthy of its 
name. 

Voted Unanimously That ''the 
Town accepts the portrait of Lord 
Stirling with thorough appreciation 
of the thoughtful generosity which 
prompted the gift." 

Rev. F. T. Crane: Mr. Modera- 
tor, I always have enjoyed the picture 
of one great man, and I think there is 



68 Proceedings of 'Town Meeting 

nothing better fitted to add to the 
attractiveness of the Town Hall than 
good portraits that are appropriate 
to the place. We now have two 
good portraits, and we understand 
better than we did when we came here 
that the second one is also appro- 
priate to the place, and I move that 
we extend a vote of thanks to Miss 
Butterick, and put it in this form: 

Voted: That the thanks of the 
Town be extended to Miss MaryE. 
Butterick for the renewed expression 
of her interest and wisdom in promot- 
ing the welfare of the Town mani- 
fested by the presentation of the 
beautiful portrait of Lord Stirling; 
and that the Town Clerk send to 
Miss Butterick an attested copy of 
this vote. 

This motion was adopted unani- 
mously. 



Sterlings Massachusetts 6g 

THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER 

(Chorus) 

Oh, say, can you see by the dawn's 

early light. 
What so proudly we hailed at the 

twilight's last gleaming. 
Whose broad stripes and bright stars 

thro' the perilous fight. 
O'er the ramparts we watch'd were so 

gallantly streaming? 

And the rocket's red glare, the bombs 
bursting in air. 

Gave proof thro' the night that our 
flag was still there! 

Oh, say, does that star-spangled ban- 
ner yet wave. 

O'er the land of the free, and the home 
of the brave? 



yo Proceedings of T^own Meeting 

The Moderator: The meeting is 
now dissolved. 



APPENDIX 

Bibliography concerning Lord Stirling 

The Life of William Alexander, Earl of Stirling, 
by his grandson, WilHam Alexander Duer. 

The Stone House at Gowanus, by Georgia Eraser. 

History of the United States, by Bancroft. 

The case of Alexander, Earl of Stirling and Dovan, 
by Thomas C. Banks. 

Sir William Alexander and American Colonization, 
by Rev. Edmund F. Slafter. 

The Stirling Peerage. Trial of Alexander Hum- 
phrys or Alexander, by William Turnbull. 

Vindication of the Rights and Titles of Alexander, 
Earl of Stirling and Dovan. Parts I and H, 
by John L. Hayes. 

House of Alexander, 2 vols., by Charles Rogers. 

Major General the Earl of Stirling, by Ludwig 
Schumacher, which contains a full bibliography. 

19 Princeton Pvcview, 315 to 336. 

LXIV North American Pvevlew, 435 to 459. 



